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Returning 35 results for 'serving of rules drive variant'.
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Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything
Variant Rules A shared campaign might use some variant rules to handle certain aspects of the game. The Adventurers League, for instance, has variant systems for gaining levels and acquiring treasure
. These “house rules,” presented below, serve as a sort of common language, ensuring that the rewards all characters receive are equivalent no matter what kind of adventure a character experienced.
Monsters
Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
characters, and use the Dragon Turtle Spellcasting table to help select spells for a spellcasting dragon. (Though the Monster Manual doesn’t explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for
making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply those rules to these aquatic dragons.)
Dragon Turtle Personality Traits
d8;{"diceNotation":"1d8","rollType":"roll","rollAction":"Trait"}
Trait
Monsters
Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse
have no personalities or memories; they’re driven only by the desire to commit evil. The amnizus that patrol here drill the rules of the Nine Hells into the new arrivals’ minds and marshal
them into legions.
Amnizu (Summoner Variant);Variant: Devil Summoning
Some amnizus have an action that allows them to summon other devils:
Summon Devil (1/Day). The amnizu summons 2d4
Monsters
Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply those rules to these aquatic dragons.)
Dragon Turtle Personality Traits
d8
1
A ruthless shipping magnate has bribed a dragon turtle to attack competitors’ vessels and drive them out of business.
2
A curious dragon turtle swam upriver from the sea and is now
Monsters
Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse
kill.
Gazer (Familiar Variant);Variant: Gazer Familiar
Spellcasters who are interested in unusual familiars find that gazers are eager to serve someone who has magical power. Unless its master is
strict, a gazer familiar can be unruly, behaving aggressively toward other Tiny creatures. A gazer serving as a familiar has the following trait:
Familiar. The gazer can serve another creature as a
Variant Human
Legacy
This doesn't reflect the latest rules and lore.
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Species
Basic Rules (2014)
If your campaign uses the optional feat rules from the Player’s Handbook, your Dungeon Master might allow these variant traits, all of which replace the human’s Ability Score Increase trait.
Monsters
Eberron: Rising from the Last War
competitors as they are on the furthering of il-Lashtavar's plans. When they aren't serving in the cities of their nightmare realm, they hunt the dreaming spirits of mortals.
Fearmongers. Their ability
to manipulate the fears of mortals sees tsucoras often sent to Eberron as Inspired (Tsucora variant);Inspired. Nothing keeps humanoid chattel in line like fear, and the tsucoras are the masters of
Monsters
Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
table to help select spells for a spellcasting dragon. (Though the Monster Manual doesn’t explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply
those rules to these aquatic dragons.)
Dragon Turtle Personality Traits
d8;{"diceNotation":"1d8","rollType":"roll","rollAction":"Trait"}
Trait
1
I speak slowly and deliberately
monsters
":"Piercing"} Piercing damage, and the target’s Speed is halved until the end of its next turn.General of a demoralized occupying army, Vladeska Drakov rules what little of Falkovnia hasn’t been
, sleep deprivation, and the endless demands of terrified troops and civilians drive her toward outbursts of paranoia and violence.
Drakov’s Domain
Falkovnia is altered by Drakov’s
Monsters
Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse
’t kill.
Variant: Gazer Familiar
Spellcasters who are interested in unusual familiars find that gazers are eager to serve someone who has magical power. Unless its master is strict, a gazer
familiar can be unruly, behaving aggressively toward other Tiny creatures. A gazer serving as a familiar has the following trait:
Familiar. The gazer can serve another creature as a familiar, forming a
Monsters
Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse
their incredible intellects and stores of information that many seek them out, including demon lords. Some sibriexes act as advisors and oracles, manipulating demons into serving their ends, while others
-shaping they provide.
Variant: Flesh Warping
Creatures that encounter a sibriex can be twisted beyond recognition. Whenever a creature fails a saving throw against the sibriex’s Warp Creature
Criminal / Spy
Legacy
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Backgrounds
Basic Rules (2014)
than most people to the world of murder, theft, and violence that pervades the underbelly of civilization, and you have survived up to this point by flouting the rules and regulations of society
; specifically, you know the local messengers, corrupt caravan masters, and seedy sailors who can deliver messages for you.
Variant Criminal: Spy
Although your capabilities are not much different
Hexblood
Legacy
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Species
Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft
unusual crown, often called an eldercross or a witch’s turn. This living, garland-like part of a hexblood’s body extends from their temples and wraps behind the head, serving as a visible
player, unless the DM rules otherwise.
Creating Your Character
At 1st level, you choose whether your character is a member of the human race or of one of the game’s fantastical races
Backgrounds
Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus
underbelly of civilization, and you have survived up to this point by flouting the rules and regulations of society.
Skill Proficiencies: Deception, Stealth
Tool Proficiencies: One
always occur in shady venues.
Variant Criminal: Spy
Although your capabilities are not much different from those of a burglar or smuggler, you learned and practiced them in a very
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything
Rewards Adventures in a shared campaign that uses variant rules for gaining levels and acquiring treasure (such as those described below) don’t include experience point awards or specific amounts and kinds of treasure.
Goliath
Legacy
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Species
Elemental Evil Player's Companion
mock folk who rely on society’s structures or rules to maintain power.
Survival of the Fittest
Among goliaths, any adult who can’t contribute to the tribe is expelled. A lone goliath has
away in the night to seek the cold will of fate.
In some ways, the goliath drive to outdo themselves feeds into the grim inevitability of their decline and death. A goliath would much rather die in
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War
Creating a Dragonmarked Character Dragonmarks manifest on certain members of a few species, represented in the rules by variant race options: For humans and half-orcs, a dragonmark is a variant race
that replaces traits associated with those races. For half-elves, a dragonmark is a variant race that lets you keep some half-elf traits and replace others with the traits associated with your mark
Monsters
Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
without the boredom. (Chaotic)
6
Control. Everyone is welcome, as long as they follow my rules. (Lawful)
Crystal Dragon Adventures
The Crystal Dragon Adventure Hooks table offers
drive the yetis out.
3
An adult crystal dragon and an elf archmage have been friends for centuries and often go stargazing together on the peaks of their favorite mountains, but the dragon is
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)
HUMAN TRAITS
If your campaign uses the optional feat rules from chapter 6, your Dungeon Master might allow these variant traits, all of which replace the human’s Ability Score Increase trait
with, including obscure dialects. They are fond of sprinkling their speech with words borrowed from other tongues: Orc curses, Elvish musical expressions, Dwarvish military phrases, and so on. VARIANT
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything
Tying Knots The rules are purposely open-ended concerning mundane tasks like tying knots, but sometimes knowing how well a knot was fashioned is important in a dramatic scene when someone is trying
Sleight of Hand with Intelligence, rather than Dexterity. This is an example of how to apply the rule in the “Variant: Skills with Different Abilities” section in chapter 7 of the Player’s Handbook.
Yuan-ti Pureblood
Legacy
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
get into places their normal forms couldn’t enter.
Their immunity to poison gives all yuan-ti a tactical advantage in dealing with other creatures. A pureblood serving as a food taster for a
can more easily pronounce the name in this altered form. An adopted name of this sort is recognized as a variant of the birth name, rather than a unique name unto itself. A yuan-ti might refer to
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
section offers three variant dragonborn race options that can be used to create a character with clear connections to a specific draconic ancestry. When you’re making a new character using one of these races, use the rules under “Creating Your Character” to fill out the details.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
Rest Variants The rules for short and long rests presented in chapter 8 of the Player’s Handbook work well for a heroic-style campaign. Characters can go toe-to-toe with deadly foes, take damage to
within an inch of their lives, yet still be ready to fight again the next day. If this approach doesn’t fit your campaign, consider the following variants. Epic Heroism This variant uses a short rest
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Out of the Abyss
12. Residential Caves
Map 6.3: Inner Blingdenstone These caverns branch off into smaller caves serving as hovels for families of svirfneblin. Tunnels lead to secondary chambers that branch out
his home, then began to throw fits and terrorize any creatures coming near. Vazuk is a specter (use the poltergeist variant). He can’t be turned while inside his former home. He attacks the characters
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)
lift. For a Tiny creature, halve these weights. Variant: Encumbrance The rules for lifting and carrying are intentionally simple. Here is a variant if you are looking for more detailed rules for
determining how a character is hindered by the weight of equipment. When you use this variant, ignore the Strength column of the Armor table. If you carry weight in excess of 5 times your Strength score, you
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm Lord’s Wrath
Threats by Air As the adventurers set off toward the caves, guardians serving the cultists of Talos sense their presence and attack. One invisible stalker flies down from the cliffs to attempt to
apart on the rocks. Flying creatures not sent by Talos must succeed on a DC 15 Strength saving throw at the start of each turn. On a failed save, severe winds drive them into the water. Creatures in the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)
a Tiny creature, halve these weights. Variant: Encumbrance The rules for lifting and carrying are intentionally simple. Here is a variant if you are looking for more detailed rules for determining how
a character is hindered by the weight of equipment. When you use this variant, ignore the Strength column of the Armor table in chapter 5. If you carry weight in excess of 5 times your Strength score
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War
members of the Emerald Claw believe that they are fighting for Karrnath, they are truly serving the lich Lady Illmarrow (see chapter 6). The greatest necromancer of the age, she seeks to unlock the
secrets of her inactive dragonmark, the Mark of Death. If she succeeds, she could come to possess unimaginable power. This makes her a formidable villain to drive the action of an entire campaign.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
Creating a Shadow Dragon Use the Shadow Dragon Personality Traits and Shadow Dragon Ideals tables to inspire your portrayal of distinctive shadow dragon characters. If you use the variant rule in the
others. (Evil)
4 Aspiration. I will one day find an escape from this condemnation. (Any)
5 Self-Serving. The petty concerns of other creatures are of no concern to me. I have enough to
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Sigil and the Outlands
garbage that gathers in Sigil’s alleys and sewers. Common and giant rats are found throughout the Cage, as are variant cranium rats known as squeakers (further detailed in Morte’s Planar Parade). Adapted
razorvine strategically to deter intruders by letting it grow along estate walls or as carefully cultivated hedges. Rules for razorvine can be found in the Dungeon Master’s Guide.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Lost Mine of Phandelver
The Dungeon Master The Dungeon Master (DM) has a special role in the Dungeons & Dragons game. The DM is a referee. When it’s not clear what ought to happen next, the DM decides how to apply the rules
adventures, like the prisoner in the goblin lair or the innkeeper in town. Who should be the DM for your gaming group? Whoever wants to be! The person who has the most drive to pull a group together and
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
The Dungeon Master The Dungeon Master (DM) is the creative force behind a D&D game. The DM creates a world for the other players to explore, and also creates and runs adventures that drive the story
supporting characters, breathing life into them. And as a referee, the DM interprets the rules and decides when to abide by them and when to change them. Inventing, writing, storytelling, improvising, acting
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
Spellcasting table to help select spells for a spellcasting dragon. (Though the Monster Manual doesn’t explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply
those rules to these aquatic dragons.) Dragon Turtle Personality Traits d8 Trait
1 I speak slowly and deliberately, pausing to reflect after (or sometimes in the middle of) each utterance
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
the following variants. Choose whichever one best suits your campaign. Ability Check Proficiency With this variant rule, characters don’t have skill proficiencies. Instead, each character has
distinction among characters. For example, a character can’t choose to emphasize persuasion or intimidation; he or she is equally adept at both. Background Proficiency With this variant rule, characters don’t
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
creatures as potential servants or pawns, valuable only as long as they fulfill the dragon’s needs. Many red dragons terrorize creatures into serving them—and sometimes into worshiping them as well. Others
raised there.
4 Ogres and ettins cowed by a young red dragon wander the foothills near the dragon’s lair, helping to drive away intruders.
5 A colony of mind flayers has captured and